London 2012 Olympics: James Ellington's fairytale ends after he finishes sixth in 200m heats

James Ellington, the sprinter who was so desperate to make it to the Olympic
Games that he auctioned himself on eBay to try to fund his dream, discovered
today why all his enterprising efforts were so worthwhile as he ran in the
200m heats to the roars of acclaim from 80,000 fans.

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So close: Team GB's James Ellington knows it's the end of the road in the 200m heatsPhoto: AFP

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End of dream: James Ellington failed to make it into the 200m semi-finalsPhoto: AFP

Sadly though, the fairytale ended there as the 26 year-old Londoner failed to make it into the semi-finals of the half-lap event, able only to finish sixth in his heat in 21.23sec

Ellington’s story captured people’s imagination. One anonymous bidder on eBay had put in an offer of £32,500 to support him but, after it was sadly revealed to be a hoax, Ellington was delighted that a men’s grooming company agreed to sponsor him.

The new funding allowed him to give up his part-time job as a community coach in south London and paid for a warm-weather training camp in the US but the competition in his heat proved just too hot.

Ellington could not hide his disappointment at his early exit and was mystified by what he felt had been a "rubbish" performance.

"I don’t know what happened, I felt good – but that’s the slowest time I’ve run this year. I’ve jogged faster than that. I’m baffled, there is no explanation for it.

"I truly believed, with the kind of shape I came into the Games, that I could make the final. From the previous times I ran - 20.5 at Birmingham on not a notoriously quick track - I thought I would definitely come here 100 per cent, I could have bet my life that I would p.b in that heat."

Yet Britain will have one representative in tomorrow’s semi-finals in the familiar, evergreen shape of Christian Malcolm, who was a finalist in Sydney 12 years ago.

After working hard to clock 20.59sec and finish runner-up in his heat, the 33-year-old Malcolm smiled: “I'm getting a bit older and it does not get any easier, so for me each round will be run like a final. But one thing you can count on is that I'll be competitive.

“The track feels very quick, it feels beautiful, you get a lot back from the track. I think you might see something special from Bolt, Lemaitre and Blake, the main guys, in the final.”